Upper East Sider Devin Marshall has launched a GoFundMe campaign for Nino’s Ristorante in the hopes he can help its owners recover from a mid-February gunpoint robbery which cost them $9,000. That’s the amount Marshall hopes to raise, but since the campaign was launched on February 20, it has only seen a total of $210 (from six donors).
The robbery took place on Feb 13 (Super Bowl Sunday) and was first reported by UpperEastSite.com. Two masked gunmen stormed into the restaurant just before 2pm and tied up owner Nino Selimaj and staff members before ransacking the eatery.
“[$9,000] may not be considered much by Manhattan standards but the owner was given that money by a patron because the business is struggling,” Marshall says.
According to the Post, Selimaj had nine grand in his pocket at the time — money “he’d borrowed from one of his customers because ‘business freakin’ sucks.'”
The Italian restaurant is located at 1354 First Avenue between 72nd and 73rd streets. To contribute, please visit the GoFundMe campaign here.